Another Road
by Layleu
Summary: BuffySupernatural cross over... Buffy finds life after chosen is not quite as restful as she first expected
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One

Buffy sighed as she passed the glass of beer to the man seated in front of her. She didn't really look at him when she took the money from his hand; she never really looked at any of the people that came into the bar.   
She found it easier that way. If she never looked she would never see, so she could go on pretending that there was nothing wrong. She didn't want to form any more connections with people, they would just let die, let you down or stab you in the back. She was through burying the people she loved, through forming friendships to only have them turn on you and hurt you in a time of need, but most of all she was through putting her heart on the line only to have it ripped out over and over again.

It had been six months since her and the other slayers closed the hellmouth and fought the first evil. After they had fled Sunnydale things had been good for a while. She had dealt with the loss of Spike and had settled into an apartment with Dawn in Rome to take some much needed rest and relaxation. Giles and Willow had taken on the task of finding the new slayers and Xander had called a timeout from the fighting evil gig and decided to travel for a while and deal with the loss of Anya.

Andrew had become Giles right hand man and it turned out he was rather good at organising the business side of things. He had set up a building space for training the new slayers and living arrangements for the ones that wanted to stay on permanently. He had also become a good friend to Buffy. Slowly she found herself trusting him and telling him things she no longer shared with the others. But she didn't tell him everything, something's she kept to herself.

So for the first few months after the big battle Buffy took sometime off and went about enjoying the things she used to like doing. She went shopping, went to the beach and even went clubbing at night, mainly just to dance and let off steam.

The new slayers were being taken care of by Kennedy and Co who had been called during the battle with the first. Buffy smiled every time she thought of the proud look that they all had after one battle. They had felt good about themselves for accomplishing something real and worthwhile and they were all stronger for having survived it. Buffy just wished she could have shared that feeling with them. But after so many battles she just found it took too much energy.  
Giles never asked her to become involved with the training of the new slayers and she never offered. She was guessing he would ask her if he needed her and was happy for her to take a little time off. 

She never imagined that he would suggest retirement. Or that he had also cut Faith off when she offered to help out. She didn't realise the divide that had formed between them until it was too big for any kind of rescue.

One night on her way home from clubbing she came across a young girl being attacked by a group of vampires. Letting instinct and experience take over she dusted the three vamps in no time. The girl thanked her graciously and Buffy walked her home, which made her slightly later than usual. When she entered her apartment she felt a heavy weight settle in the pit of her stomach. Something was wrong, very wrong. She felt all the hairs prickle on the back of her neck, slowly and silently she made her way through the apartment only to find it empty. Dawn was out with some friends and Buffy new she wouldn't be home till the next afternoon. But she had a strong feeling she was being watched.

Without turning the lights on Buffy positioned herself in the lounge room.

Taking a long shot she spoke 'Show yourself"  
She felt the air around her thicken there was definitely something watching her.

But she waited,

After a few more minutes she was starting to get frustrated 'Your starting to make me mad, and mad Buffy leads to violence, even though I cant see you, doesn't mean I cant feel you'  
She could feel a change in the air, as though what ever was in her apartment was trying to do something. She tensed ready to react if she needed to. It was close to her now, only a few feet. She was ready for it to attack her, but instead of doing so it appeared.  
To say it was what she was expecting would be a lie, the being that was now standing in front of her was not who or what she had been expecting. But the shock was short lived as a moment later she felt a smile come across her face. To her surprise it was the first genuine one in months.  
'Cordelia is that you?' Buffy asked as she took a step towards her old friend.  
The being nodded and the light around her faded until she was almost recognisable as the Cordelia Buffy had known. Something about her was considerably different. Her hair was lighter and shorter, her face was softer more rounded and mature. But most of all it was her eyes that were different. They were filled with light, compassion and understanding, Buffy had only seen a glimpse of these things in Cordelia in the past compared to what was shining through her now.

But her eyes held something else, pain and loss. Buffy didn't know what Cordy had been through the last four years but she knew it wasn't all kittens and puppies. That much Angel had told her.  
Buffy was brought out of her reflections by the sound of Cordy's voice.  
'Buffy, we need to talk'  
Buffy went into action in a flash.  
"what is it, apocalypse, another hellmouth, a horde of vampires'  
Cordy smiled 'In some ways Buffy you haven't changed much' her smile faded and she took a step in the slayers direction 'But in others you have changed in more ways than I can say'

Buffy locked eyes with Cordelia and she felt something wash over her, it was cold at first but slowly it became warm like the sun was lightly shining on her. Then it was gone.   
"What was that' Buffy asked feeling strange.  
Cordelia didn't smile this time, 'a cleansing of sorts, there was some residue left over from being in the hellmouth, I simply removed it'  
Buffy frowned 'residue, what kind of residue'  
Cordy smiled again 'not the kind you are thinking, your soul doesn't enter a place like the hellmouth without occurring some changes, the other slayers were protected by their calling but you and Faith having been called a long time ago were open to it. It is like a weight on your shoulders, it can't hurt you it just weighs you down. I have already cleansed Faith, almost right after, but with you I needed to be careful, your body and mind were dealing with other things and I didn't want to interrupt that process'

Buffy heard Cordys words but none of it really made any sense, shrugging it off she decided it was time to get down to business. "Don't think I am not glad to see you Cordy, cause I am, but I am starting to get the feeling that you are here for more than a cleansing'

Cordy frowned 'You're right, the cleansing I could have done in your sleep, there is something else, I am here to warn you'  
'I knew it, so lay it on me, vampires, demons, what do the forces of darkness have cooked up for me this time'  
Cordelia's expression turned grave and Buffy felt her stomach plummet 'That bad huh'

Cordy took a step towards her placed her hand on Buffy's shoulder "its not the forces of darkness I am here to warn you about, its your friends'  
Buffy frowned "I don't understand'  
A deep sadness washed over Cordy's face and Buffy felt sick inside 'what's going to happen to them, don't tell me their going to die, cause I wont accept that what ever it is, I wont let it hurt them'  
"I am not here to wan you about them being in danger Buffy, I am here to warn you about the danger you are in from them'  
none of this made sense "what are you talking about, what danger' Buffy said confused

Cordy's eyes filled with remorse 'they no longer trust you Buffy, they are about to find out a few things about the new slayers that they wont like, that will make them question things they never would have considered in the past, They are going to look for a scape goat and I am afraid that burden is going to fall on your shoulders'

Buffy didn't know what to make of this 'you're not making sense Cordy, what kind of things are they going to find out'

Cordy sighed 'I wanted to make this easier for you, try and ease you into it, but I can see that it isn't going to work that way, I should have known better' Cordy looked at Buffy with a deep respect on her face "you have done so much, fought so hard for this world for humanity, saved so many lives, and you have still held on to your humanity and your sense of self. I wanted this to be your time Buffy, to relax and live the life you wanted, however that maybe, but that was not to be so. When you defeated the first and called all the slayers, it broke all the rules, but the first broke allot of rules as well so the powers let it go. Not that they could have stopped it.

The slayer line is a power not even the PTB understand or created. It is older and darker than they are. But it wasn't meant to last. More and more slayers are awaking and the power is thinning. It wasn't meant for so many people at once. The power picks the people that become slayers. It has a sort of consciousness about it if it doesn't like a potential it won't activate inside them. The older PTB say that the power creates the potentials brings them into life. It knows every being that it created and only chooses the best to become slayers'.  
'The council always thought it was random, but they were wrong. When willow did that spell with the Scythe she took control of the power for a short time and took away its ability to choose. It was weakened greatly by the ordeal but it slowly building back its consciousness. Its not happy Buffy, I can feel it'


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

Buffy blinked a few times trying to absorb this information "what's going to happen'  
Cordy paused for a moment scanning Buffy's face for something, 'its going to take the power back, all the slayer that were called against its will are going to lose their slayer abilities. They are going to go back to the way they were before'  
Buffy felt sick all over again 'And what about me and Faith'  
Cordelia smiled 'It chose you Buffy, you don't have to fear that you will lose your abilities, Faith was also chosen she will remain as she is'

Buffy sighed 'so the slayer go back to regular girls and can live a normal life and Faith and I will fight the baddies, that's not so bad, from what Andrew tells me most of them will be relieved'

Cordy sighed 'Yes its not the potentials reaction I am warning you about Buffy its your friends'  
Buffy wanted to scream 'I don't understand, you keep telling me to beware but not why'  
The sadness came over Cordelia's face

'listen to me carefully Buffy, when the potentials were called much of the slayer power was made active, in the past enough has been given to the slayer for her to complete her mission. Each slayer has particular tasks she is to complete before she is allowed to die. If she dies in the process then the task does not pass onto the next slayer. Usually by the time they die, they want to. The constant fighting and darkness makes them years older than their bodies. The slayer power then moves onto the next one allowing the previous slayer rest and peace. You are the exception. Your task was to kill the master. But the power didn't leave you, you were chosen again. Yes Kendra was called and she became a slayer but something about you made the power linger inside you long enough for Xander to revive you. So you came back to life, stronger than before, stronger than any before you. So you continued fighting and escaped death, you only became stronger as time passed. You came up against formidable opponents but you always found the strength to defeat it. I know you had help Buffy but it was you that beat them back. It wasn't until the battle with Glory that the TPTB realised something was wrong.

'They took for granted that you were fighting away in Sunny dale and weren't just an ordinary slayer. They never expected you to come up against a god and at the time their problems were too big to help you. The power of the slayer was angry; it sees you as its creation Buffy and TPTB had turned their backs on you. So it intervened, it activated more of the slayer inside you, giving you what you needed to defeat a god. All you had to do was believe it could be done, and you did. It didn't expect you to jump to save Dawn, no one expected that but it respected your choice and let you go. But still the power lingered inside you, not your body Buffy but your soul. It saw Willow as a chance to bring you back so when they did that spell, it brought you back to life. Making it look like Willows actions'

'It didn't understand that you wanted peace Buffy, it thought you died without a choice. When you were brought back it didn't understand the emptiness you felt. But you kept fighting so it was content. I don't know what changes you have gone through since but they are significant. With the other slayers I can feel their presence, kind of like a candle flickering in a dark room. But when I came here tonight to see you, you shone bright like the sun. The power of the slayer is inside you Buffy, and its trying to get you ready'

'For what' Buffy asked hesitantly  
"for the rest of it' Cordy answered

"wait a second' Buffy said 'are you trying to tell me that the when all the potentials lose their powers its going to activate inside of me'  
Cordy nodded 'in a way yes, Faith will feel it also, it is preparing her as well'  
Buffy ignored that for the moment 'what does that mean exactly, I understand I will be stronger and faster etc but what me, will it just take over'

Cordy shook her head 'you still don't understand do you, you are not Buffy Summers a girl who was called to be a Slayer, you always were and will be the slayer. You weren't chosen Buffy you were created, for some reason you were made different from the others, the human body wasn't made to deal with the kind of power that you and faith will receive, so changes have been made to you that have made it possible'

"Cordy spit it out' Buffy warned  
'The power no longer wants to chose, it has found its vessels, its happy within its chosen slayers'  
"Cordy' Buffy's tone was hard  
Cordelia sighed 'You're immortal Buffy, you and Faith'

Buffy felt like she had been run over by a bus and reversed over a couple times more. She didn't want to be immortal she didn't want to live forever 'how do I stop it' she asked  
Cordy looked sad again, 'You don't, you cant, its stronger than us, I have tried to find out how but there has been no success, the power is old Buffy and strong, we don't know how it will effect you, or how much you will change. The others didn't want to tell you at all, but I had a vision and couldn't let it come true'  
Buffy finally understood "you had a vision about my friends didn't you'

Cordy nodded 'they have been controlling the potentials for the last few months, they have gotten a taste of the power that corrupted the watchers council. They aren't going to like the changes'  
Buffy frowned deep in thought "How do they find out about me and Faith'  
'Willow can feel the slayers activating, so she will feel when they lose that power, she doesn't understand the powers consciousness, it has hidden from her. She will feel the power within you Buffy, fortunately for Faith she has already left'  
Buffy was shocked 'When, she didn't...'  
'She came to say goodbye but you weren't here, she left you a note, I hid it from so the others wouldn't find it'  
'Does she know'

Cordelia nodded 'in a way, that is why she left, she has given you a way to contact her in the note, she wants nothing more to do with the rest of them, they turned down her offers to help, she wont stay were she's not wanted'  
Buffy nodded 'I understand' she paused 'what will they do, when they find out'

They are going to try and take the power back'


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

'Excuse me miss, can I get my change' Buffy was roused from her memories and looked at the man in front of her then the money in her hand. She mentally slapped herself. She had promised herself she wasn't going to live in the past anymore. She was no longer Buffy Summers, she was just Buffy.

Quickly she got the change and handed it to the man and apologised. He grunted at her and walked away. She was about to turn move away when another body entered her vision and sat down at the bar in front of her.

He was young, mid twenties and had Blondie coloured hair, blue eyes and looked as cocky as hell. Buffy new the type and right now she wasn't in the mood.  
Deciding to get it over with and do her job, Buffy greeted him. "What can I get you' she asked forcing a pleasant smile on her face.  
He grinned at her and she knew what was coming, but to her surprise her didn't try and pick her up 'Two beers thanks'

Buffy nodded and got the beers she told him the amount and he handed her the money, as she was about to turn away he spoke to her again.  
'My brother and I just got into town, do you know of anywhere we can stay on short notice' he smiled and Buffy was trying to see if the was an ulterior motive to his question.  
'That depends' she answered  
'on what' he asked  
'what kind of rating are you after' Buffy knew she was playing, but for the first time in a while she felt like doing so.  
The guy gave a small smile '

That depends' he answered giving Buffy a mischievous look 'On what your standards are, they may differ from mine'  
Buffy smiled and checked to make sure no one was waiting to be served, it was a quiet night, she turned back to the guy 'there pretty high, But I'm afraid no place around here really meets all my needs, but if you just want to keep it simple, without much fuss, I might know of a place'  
The guy paused giving Buffy a strange look, but he soon placed it with a grin 'I have been known to rough it now and then, simple and little fuss sounds perfect. But my brother over there, he might be a little more fussy'

Buffy looked in the direction he was pointing, there was a guy sitting at a table reading a newspaper. He was kinda cute, in a different kind of way, he looked up in their direction and Buffy saw him roll his eyes before going back to his paper. She was guessing they did this kind of thing often and the brother didn't altogether approve of what he thought his brother was doing.

Buffy turned her attention back to the one in front of her and smiled 'he seems pretty relaxed to me, somehow I don't think he is too fussy'  
He gave her another strange look 'he has his moments'  
Buffy smiled 'doesn't everyone'  
'That depends' he said starting to grin again  
'On what' she asked  
'if the moments are the good times or if the moments are of the bad times'  
unable to resist Buffy asked "and your brother, I am guessing he is one that only has moments of bad'  
'yes and no' he answered watching her closely 'What about your family do they have their moments'

Buffy felt like an ice hand gripped her heart at the mention of her family feelings and memories flooded through her, she fought them away and looked blonde in the eye 'I have no family' she said in a hard tone.  
Blonde looked at her as if trying to determine if she was telling the truth or not.  
This conversation was getting too serious and Buffy felt the need to pull back 'There is a place down the road, its called the blue camel, you cant miss it as it has a blue camel on the sign flashing in neon lights, its not too expensive, but its clean and comfortable, tell the owner I sent you and he will give you a good deal' With that she turned away.  
'Hey' Buffy turned  
'how do I tell him you sent me if I don't know your name' he had the mischievous look again  
Buffy couldn't help the small smile that twitched at the corners of her mouth 'Its Buffy'

Blonde blinked before saying 'Well Buffy nice to meet you and thanks for the recommendation'  
At that moment his brother came up behind him and gave him a meaningful look. Blonde looked at his brother then nodded as some kind of silent communication passed between them. Buffy felt a pang in her heart. She missed having that kind of closeness with someone, but again she pushed it away.  
'Buffy, this is my brother Sam, Sam this is Buffy' Sam nodded and smiled at her but looked a little impatient to get going. Blonde took the hint and drank the rest of his beer. He thanked Buffy and picked up his bag and began to head for the door. Before she knew what she was doing Buffy called him.  
'Hey Blonde' she asked

He stopped at the sound of her voice and turned around trying to hide the smile on his face.  
'How do I know who to ask for if I think of a better place for you to stay' did that just come out of her mouth.  
His smile widened 'what happened to comfortable and clean with little fuss' he asked  
Buffy smiled 'lets just say I have my moments'  
He laughed and shook his head, and turned to leave, as he was nearly to the end of the bar he turned 'Ask for Dean' with smile he left with his brother following shaking his head behind him.

Buffy went home early that night the bar was quiet and her boss sent her off early. She walked home, despite the pleas her co workers gave her about safety and danger. She smiled at the thought; she was the last person they needed to warn about danger, considering she couldn't actually be hurt anymore. Not physically anyway.  
Sure she got wounds but they healed nearly as quickly as they appeared, it wasn't often that any creature of the night got close enough to hurt her anymore. With her increased speed and strength she found slaying was not quite what it used to be. But that didn't mean she no longer hunted, in any case she hunted more now just to try and fill the hunger and void she felt since fled Rome and arrived back in America.

She knew she wasn't alone in her flight, Faith had also come back home to escape the wrath and judgment of the so called Scooby gang. Buffy and Faith kept in touch and caught up often. But they were both at different stages in their lives. Faith was determined to try and make up for past deeds deciding that she needed to go out and help people, she told Buffy she needed to do it alone for now to prove to herself that she could. Buffy understood and made her promise to keep in contact. Buffy on the other hand felt the need to flee from human contact. She still saved people and slayed, but she kept a distance from the people she helped. After her friends had turned on her and Faith she no longer trusted people. The people she had loved the most had betrayed her and she felt she was never coming back from that. But while her friends drove the knife into her heart it was Dawn that twisted it and caused the irreparable damage. Dawn had sided with them caught up in their world where she was the important sister and where she had a say. Buffy partly blamed herself for Dawns betrayal always feeling the need to protect her rather than let her become involved. But wear had that protection got her, it just brought her pain.

She thought about Dean and his brother Sam, she had volunteered information to them about herself, not something she wanted anymore, but there was something about Dean and the way he was watching her, she knew there was more to him than picking up barmaids in random towns. She had enjoyed talking to him even if it was only harmless flirting. She pushed the thoughts away and concentrated on the sounds around her, she couldn't let herself become attached again not even in a small way. It would only bring her pain.  
Just as she pushed the thoughts away, the very person she was trying to forget came running around the corner and straight into her, knocking her down and landing on top of her, but if that wasn't enough Sam was right behind Dean and fell over the both of them with a thud.

Before any of them could say anything a large demon came around the corner with a large club in his hand. Before she could react Sam pulled out a gun and started firing shots the demon that did little more than piss it off. Dean noticing he had knocked her down got up and pulled her with him, pushing her behind him as if to shield her from any harm. He also pulled out a shot gun and started firing at the demon.

Buffy watched for a moment, and then decided it was time to act. These guys might not be helpless but shooting was going to get them killed. The demon was close now and started swinging its club dangerously close to where they had landed. Dean and Sam noticed this and decided to fall back. Sam went moved behind a dumpster and Dean made to follow, however he tried to pull Buffy with him and found she wouldn't budge. He misunderstood her stillness for fear and tried to pick her up; she resisted his efforts and pushed him away.

'Leave this to me, I can handle it' and she took a step towards the demon. Dean made to pull her back but Sam held him back and pulled him back to safety.  
Buffy walked a few steps towards the demon before she attacked, attacking would just mean that this was over to soon and she would have to hunt for another few hours to burn off her excess energy, right now she just wanted to fight. The demon swung at her expecting an easy hit, but before he knew what was happening the club he was so found of was flying through the air and landed ten feet away from him. Anger seemed to blind all reason and he attacked the little human that dared take his weapon. He punched and kicked and hit but nothing seemed to work on the human. She was fast and strong, stronger than any human should be. It took a while for him to register that she wasn't actually an ordinary human, but when it did he came to one simple conclusion, she must be the slayer. Having heard stories about the slayer he decided he valued his life more than his pride and tried to flee. But she was too fast and snapped his neck before he made one step.

Once it was over Buffy turned back to the brothers and sighed, she knew they would have questions that she didn't want or need to answer. They however weren't as predictable as the other people in the same situation. She turned and found herself looking down the barrel of a shotgun.

She sighed and raised her eyebrows 'You think that will do anything, go ahead pull the trigger, see what happens'  
Dean seemed to hesitate 'You aren't human'  
She shook her head 'not really , not anymore'  
Sam came up behind his brother his gun aimed at her 'what are you'  
Buffy smiled 'I don't know really, there is not really a word for it'  
An annoyed look came over Deans features 'Stop playing games'  
Buffy laughed 'there are a few things I don't do, play games, take orders from anyone, and the last is kill humans'  
Dean blinked 'who are you'  
Buffy smiled again but this time without any feeling 'The slayer'


End file.
